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State Allows Floor of County Mental Health Facility to Reopen

Posted on: Friday, 19 May 2006, 06:54 CDT

By M. Alexander Otto, The News Tribune, Tacoma, Wash.

May 19--The fifth floor of Pierce County's mental health facility has reopened after the state shut it down in January because of poor food quality and lapses in patient and staff safety.

The state Department of Health let the floor of the Puget Sound Residential Treatment Facility, formerly known as Puget Sound Behavioral Health, reopen Monday. It is at 3580 Pacific Ave.

The state acted after administrators addressed the problems and fixed up the floor with fresh paint, among other things, said Fran Lewis, head of the treatment facility. By Thursday, there were 10 patients in the 30-bed unit, which is designed for people involuntarily committed for up to 17 days.

Before January, the floor was licensed as a hospital unit, but it now is licensed as an "evaluation and treatment center," which has less rigorous staffing requirements. The switch was a cost-saving move for the county mental health system.

The floor was to reopen March 1, but state inspections and paperwork caused delays, Lewis said. In the meantime, the county mental health system was paying Western State Hospital to take county patients, an agreement that ended Thursday, she said.

Alex Otto: 253-597-8616

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Copyright (c) 2006, The News Tribune, Tacoma, Wash.

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Source: The News Tribune

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